Floor waxer



Aug- Z 1949- y *i c. J. WILLIAMS, JR 2,477,777I

' FLOOR WAXER Filed July 5,- 1947 INVENTOR Cor! J W/V//am Jn ATTORNEYSPatented Aug. 2, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT ('lgrl-"ZIIV z;477,'z'77flEnoes WAXER Carl J; Williams, rr.; south Buningmavt;

appxicaiionony 1947; seminmreaarzf (omni-sal Claims. L.

This inventiony relatesl to an improved: liquid Waxapplicator, foruse-for example inwaxing linoleum or wood oors. andV theV like.

One of the objects of= the invention is to-.provide anv improved waxapplicatorforb the purpose described, which is of improved structural.'sinrplicityand ruggedness andrelatively inexpensive to manufacture andmaintain in perfect working condition. Y

Another. object of the invention is to` provide a deviceA of thecharacter` described which incorporates an.: improvedwax dispensingVcontrol valve arrangement.

Another object of: the; inw-intimil is'l to provide in. a device of thecharacter.Vv described: an'y im proved control arrangement for-thervalvemechanism which. regulates they ratei of application of. wax fromA thedevice.

Another object of'4 thevv invention` is toiprovide in. ay device of thecharacter describedv an improved valve unit which may. be' easily.assemliledy and/or removed from the device for serviceing purposes. l

Another object of the invention is to provide a'device of the characterdesoribed whichA em-v bodies a relatively large wax'reservoir' While being, atthe same time ofr unusuallyl compact and? lightweightconstruction.

Another object of the invention isft'oy provide'a device of thecharacterdescribedi which: is most convenient to use andto service;

Other objects and advantages of th'e'invention will appear inAthespeciiication hereinafter.

Inthe drawing:

Fig. 1 is a top perspective View of'arwax applicatoroi the invention;andi Fig. 2` is a transverse vertical; section there'` through, onalarger scale.

The drawings illustrate` the invention tofcomiprise essentially housingindicate'df. generally. at lll. which. is attached to a handle |52.'forvconvenient manipulation of the. waXer. Thus; itv will4 beunderstood.that the handle i12 may be of any desired shape andy dimension, andwill. be forrned of any suitable material as maybe preferred. Thehousing structure HJ comprises a box-like sheet metal fabrication havingsid-eeY and'. top wall. portions lll-i6 and end platesv |581.' Thebottom. of the hou-sing lois partiallylenclosedf by a flanged sheetmetal bottom' platev 20.- which`v is generally rectangular in. outercontour. to: complement the side and end` wall marginal por.- tions of`the walls lll-i8. The upturnedside` flange portions 22 of thebottom-.plate 20 may be" spot-welded or soldered or. otherwise suitablythrough' the interior of the housing attached.' to y thei bottom.`edges; of? the wallplates oftthe housing le. Atthegecmetricloenterothebottom-platefit isfforrned Witha circular aperturezd.

Interiorly of the vhousing I ilna horizontal-pars tition plate? 26 isprovidedto-extendvin parallel spaced relation above the bottom plate 2U;and isiv searri-weidedy on soldered: or..v otherwise.l suitably attachedto-theside Walllportions lll-I8 ofthe housing it, asy by means of` adepending.- 'ange 28 formediintegrally. with the partition plate 26 Theplate 26l is centrally reinforced! byV ametal plate 3x9,` and;theplate.y elements 264-30; are` circularly bored and threadedV asfindicated` at 32; inf linewith the apierlfure 24 which is formed throughthe bottornlpl'ate 2D; The valve unit' is illustrated tocomprise-peripherally knurledfbase plate134-having a 'diameter greaterthanithedii ameter ofy the; aperture 3-2f through the partition plate.Thel base plate 34: mounts. at itsV upper faceI andA aperipherallyNthreaded topy plate 36 which is so dimensioned and threaded as to beVadapted to screw into. and' outv of; connection with thepastition plate;elements 26`-30L TheV top plate 36 may. be attached to the platev 34asby means oi screws 335-38; or'by welding, or any other suitablemeans.-

The plates :i4-35' are centrally boredl to provide a valve. porti 39,and a` valve plate 4ll is pivotally mounted as: at 42' upon the topplate? I3&5; andY is din'iensioned` so as to normally close thevalveport 39; A crank arm 44 extends froml thevalve:plate` Mlizand isforked' and adapted at its! upperv end to receive in freely rotatablerelation therein. thefreducedF neck portion 46 or thev valve controllstenreB.. The crankv arm All' is also' formed with a tab portion 4.9iwhich engages againstl the upper fendi ofy a compression Yspring 5,0.;the'lower endlof# thespring llibeing disposedj' to .bear vdownwardlyagainst the top-plate 35 andJ tofbe positioned thereon by means of an`abut-l ment 521v Thus; the spring 5l] normally biases the valvefplateillinto valveport closing position:

l The Valve stem` v4H! extends obliquely upwardly 50; by means? of" ametal plate 56' which is spot-V weldedror-otherwise.attached tothehousing wall.

A screwthreaded nutv 58 is also shown as beingI welded' or. otherwisefixed' tothe reinforced housingz wall portiona. The housing wallstructure' and the nutvv 58: are suitably.1 threaded so` as to engagethe threaded body portion of the valve stem 48 so that rotation of thevalve stem 4B in one direction from externally of the housing will causethe crank arm member 44 to be pushed down so as to open the valve plate40 relative to the port 39. Upon reverse rotation of the valve stem 48the latter retreats, thereby permitting the spring 50 to return thevalve plate 40 to port-closed position.

At its outer end the valve stem 48 carries a. pivot pin 6D which isconnected to the handle structure I2 previously referred to; and asillustrated in Fig. 2 the handle construction may conveniently include asocket portion 52 into which is slip-fitted and pinned any desired formof handle 64. Thus, it will be appreciated that the operator of thewaxer may pivot the handle I2 vertically to any preferred attitude formost convenient use of the device while pushing and pulling theapplicator back and forth across a floor surface or the like. Also, itwill be understood that simple rotations of the handle l2 in oppositedirections will procure corresponding opening and closing movements ofthe valve device, so as to control the ow of liquid Wax, a supply ofwhich` is indicated at 65, through the valve port 39.

A polishing pad of cloth or other porous fabric or the like as indicatedat 1U is stretched across the bottom of the bottom plate 20 and thenceupwardly around the side edges thereof. A band as indicated at 12 isthen applied around the marginal edges of the pad 10 to clamp the latterfirmly against the sides of the housing. A clamp 14 or some othersuitable device is preferably employed to clamp the band 12 firmlyagainst the fabric. Also, a rubber bumper band 15 is preferablyslip-fitted over the band 12 to provide a perimetral bumper extendingall around the housing l so as to enclose the assembly and preventscarring of furniture and the like when the applicator is in use.

'I'he fabric pad 1D is readily detachable from the housing, whereuponthe larger opening 24 is uncovered so that the valve unit may be readilyinserted or withdrawn through the opening 24. For filling the waxreservoir a filler-opening 16 and a screw cap 18 is provided in the topWall of the housing. Preferably, a gasket as illustrated at 80 will beemployed to more perfectly seal the luncture between the valve unit andthe partition plate 26. Thus, it will be appreciated that the inventionprovides a structurally simplified housing comprising a liquid waxreservoir having a horizontal partition plate in the bottom portionthereof; said plate being formed with a threaded aperture into which anexternally threaded valve unit may be readily assembled and disassembledwithout disruption of the rest of the structure.

Although only one form of the invention has been shown and described indetail it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that theinvention is not so limited but that various changes may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of theappended claims.

I claim:

1. A liquid wax applicator comprising a housing forming a reservoir fora supply of liquid wax, said housing having a bottom plate formed with acentral aperture, said housing also having a partition plate extendingtransversely and horizontally therewithin in parallel spaced relationabove said bottom plate and defining the bottom limit of the waxreservoir Within said housing, said partition plate having a circularopening therethrough in line with the bottom plate aperture, a valveunit, screwthreaded means mounting said valve unit in closure relationto said partition plategopening, said bottom plate aperture being sodimensioned as to permit free access therethrough to said valve unit andpassage of the latter through said aperture in connection with valveunitassembly and disassembly operations, said valve unit comprising a baseplate larger than said opening and bored to provide therethrough a valveport, a valve plate pivotally mounted upon said base plate to close saidvalve port, a crank arm extending from said valve plate, spring meansarranged between said base plate and said crank arm for normally biasingsaid valve plate into port-closed position, a valve stem connected atone end to said crank arm so as to be freely rotatable thereon but xedso as to push against said crank arm to raise said valve plate to opensaid valve port, said valve stem being extended through a side Wallportion of said housing in screwthreaded relation therein wherebyrotations of said valve stem in opposite directions procure axialdisplacements of said valve stem in corresponding directions, handlemeans pivotally connected to the outer end of said valve stem whereby tobe pivotable in vertical directions relative to said casing while at thesame time said handle means may be employed to push and pull said deviceback and forth across a floor surface or the like, and whereby rotationsof said handle about the longitudinal axis thereof will regulate thedegree of opening of said valve and the rate of flow of wax from saidreservoir through the valve and through the bottom plate aperture, aporous fabric stretched across the bottom of said bottom plate, bandmeans encircling the marginal edges of said fabric and clamping thelatter against said housing, and elastic bumper means extending aroundthe side wall bottom edges of said housing.

2. A liquid wax applicator comprising a hous ing forming a reservoir fora supply of liquid wax, said housing having a bottom plate formed with acentral aperture, said housing also having a partition plate extendingtransversely and horizontally therewithin in parallel spaced relationabove said bottom plate and dening the bottom limit of the wax reservoirwithin said housing, said partition plate having a circular openingtherethrough in line with the bottom plate aperture, a valve unitmounted in closure relation to said partition plate-opening, said bottomplate aperture being so dimensioned as to permit free accesstherethrough to said valve unit and passage of the latter through saidaperture in connection with valve unit assembly and disassemblyoperations, said valve unit comprising a member bored to providetherethrough a valve port, a valve plate pivotally mounted u-pon saidmember to close said valve port, a crank arm extending from said valveplate, spring means arranged between said member and said crank arm fornormally biasing said valve plate into port-closed position, a valvestem connected at one end to said crank arm so as to be freely rotatablethereon but xed so as to push against said crank arm to raise said valveplate to open said valve port, said valve stem being extended through aside wall portion of said housing in screwthreaded relation thereinwhereby rotations of said valve stem in opposite directions procureaxial displacements of said valve stem in corresponding directions, andhandle means pivotally connected to the outer end of said valve stemwhereby to be pivotable in vertical directions relative to said casingwhile at the same time said handle means may be employed to vpush andpull said device back and forth across a floor surface or the like, andwhereby rotations of said handle about the longitudinal axis thereofwill regulate the degree of opening of said valve and the rate of ow ofwax from said reservoir through the valve and. through the bottom plateaperture.

3. A liquid wax appiicator comprising a heusg ing forming a reservoirfor a supply of liquid wax, said housing having a bottom plate formedwith a central aperture, said housing also having a partition plateextending transversely and horizontally therewithin in paralisi spacedrelation above said bottom plate and defining the botu tom limit of thewax reservoir within said housing, said partition plate having acircular opening therethrough in line with the bottom `plate aperture, avalve unit mounted in closure rela tion to said partition piatenopening,said bottom plate aperture being so dimensie-ned as to permit freeaccess therethrough to valve unit and passage of the latter through saidaperture in connection with valve unit assembly-1disassemN blyoperations, said valve unit comprising a member bored to providetherethrough a valve port, a valve plate pivotally mounted upon saidmember to close said valve port, moans arranged for normally biasingsaid valve plate into portclosed position, a valve Stem connected at oneend to said valve plate so as to be operable upon rotation to raise saidvalve plate to open said valve port, said valve stem being extendedthrough a side wall portion of said housing and terminating in handlemeans employed to push -i' and pull said device back and forth across afloor surface or the like, whereby rotations of said. handle about thelongitudinal axis thereof will regulate the degree of opening of saidvalve and the rate of flow of wax from said reservoir through the valveand through the bottom plate aperture.

4. A liquid wax applicator comprising a housing forming a reservoir fora supply of liquid wax, said housing ha-ving a plate formed with anopening, a valve unit mounted upon said plate-opening, said valve unitcomprising a member bored to provide therethrough a valve port, a valveplate pivotally mounted upon said member to close said valve port, acrank arm extending from said member, spring means arranged between saidmember and. said crank arm for normally biasing said valve plate intoport-closed position, a valve stem connected at one end to said crankarm so as to be freely rotatable thereon but xed so as to push again-stsaid crank arm to raise said valve plate to open said valve port, saidvalve stem being extended through a side wall portion of said housing inscrewthreaded relation therein whereby rotations of said valve stem inopposite directions procure axial displacements of said valve stem incorresponding directions, handle means pivotally connected to the outerend of saidvalve stem whereby to be pivotable in vertical directionsrelative to said casing while at the same time said handle means may beemployed to push and pull said device back and forth across a floorsurface or the like, and whereby rotations of said handle about thelongitudinal axis thereof will regulate the degree of opening of saidval-ve and the rate of flow of wax from said reservoir through the valveand. through the bottom plate aperture, a porous fabric stretched acrossthe bottom of said bottom plate, means encircling the marginal edges ofsaid fabric for clamping the latter against said housing, and elasticbumper means extending around the side wall bottom edges of saidhousing.

5. A liquid wax applicator comprising a housing forming a reservoir fora supply of liquid wax, said housing having a bottom plate formed withan aperture, said housing also having a partition plate extending abovesaid bottom plate and defining the bottom limit of the wax reservoirwithin said housing, said partition plate having a circular openingtherethrough in line with the bottom plate aperture, a valve unitdetachably mounted upon said partition plate opening, said bottom plateaperture being so dimensioned as to permit free access therethrough tosaid valve unit and passage of the latter through said aperture inconnection with valve unit assembly-disassembly operations, said valveunit comprising a member bored to provide therethrough a valve port, avalve mounted upon said member to close said valve port, a valve stemconnected at yone end to said valve so as to be freely rotatable andfixed so as to open and close said valve when rotated, said valve stembeing extended through a side wall portion of said housing inscrewthreaded relation therein whereby rotations `of said valve stem inopposite directions procure axial displacements of said valve stem incorresponding directions for operation of said valve, handle meansconnected to the outer end of said valve stem to be employed to push andpull said device back and forth across a floor surface or the like, andwhereby rotations of said handle about the longitudinal axis thereofwill regulate the degree of opening of said valve and the rate of flowof Wax from said reservoir through the valve and. through the bottomplate aperture, and a porous fabric stretched across the bottom of saidbottom plate.

CARL J. WILLIAMS, JR.

REFERENCES CITED The following referenlces are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,194,819 Brownstein Mar. 26,1940 2,307,858 Rufo Jan. 12, 1943

